Russian Victory Day - May 09

 

Victory Day or May 09 Day marks the capitulation of Nazi  Germany to the Soviet Union  in the part of the Second World War known in the Soviet Union as the Great Patriotic War  where the Soviet Union fought against Nazi Germany. It was first inaugurated in the 16 Republics of the Soviet Union, following the signing of the surrender document late in the evening on 8 May 1945

Though the official inauguration happened in 1945 (which means it has been celebrated since 1946), the holiday became a non-labour day only in 1965 and the  festival was celebrated to commemorate the Red Army's victory over the Nazi forces in Soviet Union

The celebration of the 60th anniversary of Victory Day in Russia in 2005 became the largest national and popular holiday since the collapse of the Soviet Union

In communist East Germany, 8 May was officially known and celebrated as "Liberation Day" and was a public holiday between 1950 and 1966, and again on the 40th anniversary in 1985